Fruit basket



P. ,1. F. GALLAGHER FRUIT BASKET Filed Oct. 16 1922 A TTOR/VEVS Patented Got, 23, 1923, V i

entree snares earner easiest PATRICK J. 1i. GALLAGHER, OF MARLBORO, NEW YORK.

FRUIT BASKET.

Application filed October 16, 1922. Serial No. 59,826.

To aZZwhom it may concern: in use. It will be obvious that by reason of 55 Be it known that I, PATRICK J. F. GAL- the pivotal connection of the handle with LAGHER, a citizen of the United States, and the basket the former may be swung to suba resident of Marlboro, in the county of Ulstantially horizontal position and recessed 5 ster and State of New York, have invented within the basket so that a number of basa new and Improved Fruit Basket, of which kets may be nested for shipment.

the following is a'full, clear,and exact de- Supported by each pivot pin 6 and posiscription. tioned interiorly of the handle 7 is a cover This invention relates to improvements in retaining member 9, preferably formed of a 10 baskets and has particular reference to a single length of material which is bent upon fruit basket. V itself to provide the inclined portion 10, 65

An object of the invention is to provide the horizontal portion 11 and the portion 12, a simple, inexpensive and effective mounting which forms one extremity of the retaining for the handle and cover of a basket wheremember and which engages the other ex- 15 by the handle may be recessed within the tremity thereof, said extremities being probasket so that a number of baskets may be vided with an opening 13 for receiving the nested for shipment and the cover securely pivot pin 6, the retaining member being thus maintained in closing position after the secured to the handle and movable therebasket has been filled with fruit. with.

The above and other objects will appear After the basket has been filled and it is more clearly from the following detail dedesired to mount the cover 14- thereof in 75 scription, when taken in connection with the closing position, one longitudinal edge of accompanying drawing, which illustrates a said cover is first positioned beneath the porpreferred embodiment of the inventive idea. tion llof one of the retaining members 9.

In the drawing The other edge of said cover is then engaged Figure 1 is a fragmentary transverse secwith the inclined portion 10 of the other retion through the basket showing the cover taining member 9 and pressure is exerted in position and the handle extended; upon said edge of the cover so as to force Figure 2 is a perspective View of the cover the adjacent side of the basket 4 outwardly retaining means employed in connection to position the edge of the cover beneath the with the invention; and portion 11 of said other retaining member.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal At the same time a downward pressure may section through the basket. be exerted upon the intermediate portion of Referring more particularly to the ac the handle 7 in order to flex the sides of the companying drawing, the numeral 4t indibasket outwardly to facilitate the positioncates the body portion of the basket, which .ing of the cover beneath the retaining memis preferably formed of veneer as disbers. The under surfaces of the portions 11 tinguished from the ordinary fruit basket of the retaining members are in substanwhich is usually made of splints, the side tiallv the same plane as the upper edge of walls of the basket being inclined inwardly the basket 4 and the cover 142 is of slightly toward the bottom thereof. The top edge greater length than the interior length of of the basket is preferably provided with inthe basket so that when the cover is in closner and outer reinforcing strips 5 and at ing position the ends thereof rest upon the the central. portion of the basket the same is upper edges of the basket, as shown in Fig' provided with oppositely disposed pivot ure 3, while the intermediate portion of the pins 6 to which the handle 7 is connected ad cover is flexed downwardly by reason of the jacent the extremities thereof, the free ends engagement with the portions 11 of there- 8 of said handle being adapted to frictiontaining member, thus placing a tension upon ally engage the inner surfaces of the side the ends of the cover which make it exextended position. This frictional engagetract fruit from the basket. This construcment between the ends of the handle 7 and tion has been found to be quite advantathe side walls of the basket aids in maintaingeous over the constructions employed in ing the handle in its extended position when baskets now in use which simply employ walls of the basket when the handle is in its tremely difficult to raise said ends and exclips to secure the cover to the basket, which clips are easily removable to enable fruit to be surreptitiouslyextracted from the basket. What I claim is: a '1. In a basket, a body portion having side walls, a handle pivoted to said side walls and having its ends arranged interiorly thereof and at an angle thereto whereby-a frictional engagement between said ends and side walls is effected when the handle is in extended position.

2. In a basket, a body portion, a handle therefor, a cover for said body portion, and retaining means carried by said handle and having angular portions, one of which is engageable by the cover to spread the side walls of the body portion when placing the cover in closing position and the other of said-angular portions being engageable with said coversto maintain the same in closing position.

3. In a bracket, a body portion, a handle therefor, a cover for said body portion, and retaining means carried by said handle and having angular portions, one of which is engageable by the cover to spread the side walls of the body portion when placing the cover in closing position and the other of said angular portions being engageable with said cover to maintain the same in closing position, the last named angular portion being in the same plane with the upper edge of the body portion.

1. In a basket, a body portion, a handle therefor, a cover for the basket engageable with the upper edge of said body portion at oppositely disposed points and capable of being flexed downwardly into the basket at intermediate points, and means carried by said handle and engageable with said cover to maintain the same in a flexed position.

5. In a basket, a body portion, a handle therefor, a cover for the basket engageable with the upper edge of said body portion at oppositely disposed points and capable of being flexed downwardly into the basket at intermediate points, and a retaining element formed of a single length of material bent upon itself toprovide a cover engaging portion for maintaining said cover in a flexed position.

oppositely disposed points and capable of being flexed downwardly into the basket at J intermediate points, and a retaining ele ment formed of a single length of material bent u on itself to rovide a cover en a in b '3 portion for maintainingsaid cover in a flexed position, said cover engaging portion being disposed in the same horizontal. plane with the upper edge of said body portion. 7

7. In a basket, a body portion, a handle therefor, a cover for said bodyportion, and a cover retaining member interposed between said handle and cover and provided with an inclined cover guiding portion and an an nlarly disposed cover engaging portion, the latter of which is adapted to engage the cover to maintain the same in any position on the body portion. 7

8. In a basket a body portion the side walls of which are capable of being flexed outwardly, a cover'for said body portion having its ends supported upon the upper edges of the ends of said body portion, and means engageable by said cover when the latter is being placed in closing position for flexing said side walls outwardly to permit of the intermediate portion of said cover being flexed downwardly into the basket so that the upper surface of the cover will be substantially in a plane with the upper edge of said side walls.

9. In a basket, body portion the side walls of which are capable of being flexed outwardly, a cover for said body portion having its ends supported upon the upper edges of the ends of said bodyportion, and means engage'able by said cover when the latter is being placed in closing position for flexing said side walls outwardly to permit of the intermediate portion of said cover being flexed downwardly into the basket so that the upper surface of the cover will be substantially in a plane with the upper edge of said side walls, said means also engaging said cover to retain the same in its flexed position. PATRICK J. F. GALLAGHER. 

